On this vase, we see something new. Even if, in composition it resembles the vase with the two lions from Attica, it is of a much higher quality, but what is more, it employs two different colors – besides the light background, it uses black and a red color. Moreover, the details in the neck and the head are no longer painted, but incised, which allows for much greater detail.
London, British Museum, 1860,0404.18
Miko Flohr, 11/09/2020
Two so-called ‘aryballoi’, which were used to store perfumed oil. Both date to the early seventh century BCE, but the slightly larger one on the left was made in Italy, on the island of Ischia, at Pithekoussai, while the smaller one on the right comes from Corinth and prefigures a way of decorating that would become quite prominent here later in the same century.
London, British Museum, 1969,1215.1 and 1950,0124.2.
Miko Flohr, 10/09/2020
Large bowl with two lions surrounded by geometric elements. The diameter of the bowl is 54 cm, and it is 25 cm high. It belongs to the so-called ‘orientalising period’, and shows a somewhat higher level of anatomic detail than the two warriors depicted yesterday.
London, British Museum, 1842,0728.827.
Miko Flohr, 09/09/2020
A so-called ‘kantharos’, decorated with geometric motifs and something resembling a scene with two warriors with spears and swords. The warriors are very schematic.
London, British Museum, 1910,1013.1.
Miko Flohr, 08/09/2020
So-called ‘skyphos’ from the geometric period – it dates to the first half of the eighth century BCE. The decoration is simple and straightforward, but not very well cared for. You can see how the concentric circles were drawn with an instrument with multiple brushes.
New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art, 74.51.589.
Miko Flohr, 07/09/2020
This is an early seventh century BC vase from Etruria, now in the Lowe Art Museum in Miami. Classical archaeologists would typically look further eastwards in this period, towards Athens and Corinth, but Central Italy is alive and kicking, and has its own ways of doing stuff. There is more red, and less black, but basic ingredients are similar, combining repetitive decorative elements with simple geometric patterns – in this case, lines. Still, this vase stands out in its simplicity.
Miko Flohr, 18/12/2018
This stemmed chalice was made in Etruria around the middle of the sixth century BC. Perhaps, it comes from Vulci where such vases have been found in great numbers. It is, to put it mildly, rather elaborately decorated (and not necessarily technically very functional for drinking). It is now in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The greyish-black color of the vase is typical for the so-called ‘Bucchero’ technique, with which this vase was made. The decoration seems at least partially, hand-shaped rather than mold-shaped – particularly as far as the details are concerned.
Miko Flohr, 15/12/2018